Chante Jantjies refutes claims she is the founder of Mara Phones

Former Miss Teen SA and news anchor Chante Jantjies has refuted claims she is the founder and owner of Mara Phones.

This comes after reports the company was put on auction recently, despite having been given a R1.5bn cash injection by Standard Bank and the Industrial Development Corporation when it was launched in 2019.

Chante's name came up in a series of Twitter posts linked to the company's failure, leading to her setting the record straight.

A statement, drafted by her legal team, said Chante bought and invested in a Mara Phones franchise two years ago but did not received any funds from Mara Phones or its founders.

“As a small franchise owner, our client is not connected to nor involved in the day-to-day operations of Mara Phones, nor does our client own or have a share in the company.” read the statement.

“Unsubstantiated claims, harassment and unfounded allegations addressed to our client will not be tolerated.”

Read the full statement below:

According to My Broadbrand, Mara Phones Global CEO Chris Corsi and founder and board member Ashish Thakkar equated the failure of the business to a “lack of uptake in its products, fewer government tenders for its devices, and the impact of the Covid-19 lockdown”.

“Unfortunately, the lack of uptake in the SA domestic market coupled with a shortfall in tender materialisation and lockdowns has prompted this course of action.” they said.